Applying for an extension of your Spouse visa is the second step towards settlement in the UK. This stage is also known as the leave to remain application. As it is with the Entry clearance application, there are certain requirements to be fulfilled in order to be eligible for the grant of such extension.

These requirements are pretty much the same as the ones which were required to be satisfied under the initial entry clearance application with a few exceptions, as follow:

Here, the applicant and the sponsor are required to meet the income (through self-employment, salaried or non-salaried employment or non-employment sources) amounting to at least £18,600 or cash savings of £62,500. The difference here is that, the applicant’s income may also be used towards fulfilling the financial requirement, whereas under Entry clearance applications, only income of the sponsor is taken into account.

At the extension stage, the applicant must evidence English language proficiency yet again! This time, the CEFR level at which the language proficiency is to be demonstrated is higher, i.e. A2. The rationale behind this requirement is pretty obscure but the Home Office explains it as being necessary to evidence that the applicant must be better accustomed to the language after having spent 2.5 years in the UK.

The exceptions to this requirement remain the same as the ones under Entry clearance applications. However, you would not be able to claim exceptional circumstances as the reason for not being able to meet this requirement.

Applicants would have to once again evidence the genuineness and subsistence of their relationship with their sponsor and very specific evidence is accepted as proof of this. Our advice for applicants who make the initial entry clearance application with us is that, you accumulate documents evidencing your relationship with your sponsor, right from the time you enter the UK.

The applicant would have to evidence that they have been residing at the same accommodation as the sponsor during the course of their 2.5 year stay in the UK.

Applicants whose relationship with their sponsor has broken down after entering the UK as their spouse/partner, as a result of domestic violence committed against them, would be eligible to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain in the UK.

To be eligible to apply under this exception, you would have to already have leave to enter or remain as the spouse of your sponsor (a British citizen or person settled in the UK).

You need not wait until your current leave expires, to apply. You may apply as soon as the situation demands it.

Domestic violence includes any/all of the following:

• Any incident or pattern of incidents of controlling, coercive or threatening behaviour
• Violence or abuse between those aged 16 or over who are, or have been, intimate partners or family members regardless of gender or sexuality
• This can include, but is not limited to, the following types of abuse:
  • psychological
  • physical
  • sexual
  • financial
  • emotional

Domestic violence is not limited to physical or mental abuse from your sponsor alone! Domestic violence suffered, may be at the hands of the sponsor’s family (e.g. parents, step-family etc.)

*Note: You would not be required to meet the English language requirement or the Life in the UK test under this category of applications.

There is also a fee-waiver option for an application under this category. You could apply for Destitution Domestic Violence (DDV) Concession and provide evidence that you would be unable to meet your basic living costs if you are required to pay the application fees.

What do you do if you have lost your loved one after you have entered the UK as their spouse/partner?

You may continue to stay in the UK even though the demise of your loved one prevents you from meeting the relationship requirement in its technical sense. The Home Office is not that heatless after all.

You may apply for indefinite leave to remain as the bereaved partner/spouse of your sponsor. There are certain requirements you would have to meet to be eligible to be granted such leave to remain.

• You should have been in a genuine and subsisting relationship with your sponsor at the time of their passing
• Your sponsor should not have been permanently residing outside the UK at the time of his death
• You should have been living together and must have had an intention to live together permanently in the UK at the time of their passing

Your application is likely to be refused under the following circumstances:

• You have a criminal record in the UK or another country
• You provided false or incomplete information to the Home Office
• You have broken UK immigration law

*Note: You would not be required to meet the English language requirement or the Life in the UK test under this category of applications.

This type of application cannot be made by a Fiancé or proposed civil partner of the sponsor.